Help needed please -- to pull out or not to pull out?

burntfingersJune 21, 2013

I've waffled on this long enough; time for help.

The situation:

1. I need to pick a faucet for my prep sink. This sink will be used (wait for it....) for prep. And occasionally to supply water for baking and the dog's bowl. And to serve as an ice bucket during entertaining.

2. I like to keep my faucet on 'spray' (as opposed to 'normal' flow), so I've been looking for a pull-out faucet where the faucet does not have to be put back in 'spray' every time the water is turned on.

3. The sink (and faucet) are in the corner of an island that is closest to the dining area and living room. Small open plan house. So I've been looking for an unobtrusive faucet - about 8' high.

4. The house & kitchen are trending modern.

5. Most of the faucets I've been able to find that fit the style of the house and have a pullout spray are high arc, and therefore too tall. And of those, only a few will stay in the spray position if the water is turned off.

6. As a complicating factor, this sink also has a Tapmaster. Since the faucet has to remain in the 'on' position for the Tapmaster to work, I don't know how this will affect the spray/non-spray function of the faucet.

7. So we come to the crux of the matter. Do I go with the Kohler Karbon, which does have a spray that survives having the water turned off and which I've drooled over for two years, but which is way over budget, a Grohe Eurodisc which does have a pullout but which Grohe has told me re-sets whenever the water is turned off, or do I just go with a standard Eurodisc faucet - no pullout - and just put on one of those spray attachments that screws on the end of the faucet and that you can buy at Home Depot for under $10?

This link might help - it shows the pullout Grohe. The non-pullout looks the same but with just a spout. And I'm sure you all know what the Karbon looks like ....

A faucet is something you touch and USE every single day. Even if you compromise elsewhere, that's the place to focus on quality. It's beyond a PIA to replace a crappy quality faucet that breaks---and potentially floods your home. No Chinese faucet will ever come into my home. I've dealt with far too many cabinet replacements as an insurance claim tracing back to a bad faucet (or a crappy rubber washing machine hose that hadn't been changed out in 4 years time.)

Karbon. Hands down. The quality and utility and style combo cannot be beat.

LWO - I'm reading into your statement, but are you saying that Grohe is a crappy quality faucet? Correct me if I'm wrong.

We've had a Grohe LadyLux Plus faucet for years without any problems. It doesn't have to be reset from spray when you turn it off. We love it. When we go to my sil's new house, I can see that that is one place she skimped. Her faucet is a piece of crap. Our Grohe has held up with heavy use and when we remodel we will use the same faucet and add another Grohe to our prep sink.

However, if I loved the Kohler Karbon as much as you seem to, I'd try to swing that one if at all possible. I think it's a really cool faucet but I just couldn't justify the cost for *me.*

I have the Kohler Karbon and it is one of the best things in my kitchen. Have you tried a Karbon to see if the spray position stays on when the water is turned off? I ask because mine does not and I tried it a few times after reading your post because I didn't think it did.

Another update.... after hearing from GWers that their Karbon faucets didn't maintain a spray after having turned off the water, I called Kohler again. It seems that every Kohler faucet EXCEPT the Karbon will maintain the spray setting. Ugh -- just as I was about to order one.

I am considering a Karbon faucet for some of the same reasons although I don't really need the constant spray function. But I do need a nice looking faucet because it's for the prep sink in the island of the open plan kitchen. Plus, I like the idea that the faucet will stay where I put it so I can prep non-stop without having to readjust the faucet. Like a third hand. I'm looking for feedback from users. Do you love it? Hate it? Is it worth the money. Thanks.